


Many Travels

by SaltwaterJanuary



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Archaeology, Beaches, Camping, Chapters are not connected, Different Characters Appear In Each Chapter, Dinner, Dinner dates, F/M, Fancy, Fun, Gambling, Grouchy Eggman, Implied Silvaze, Mostly Gen, Resorts, Sailing, Staycation, Summer Vacation, Travel, Walks In The Woods, World Travel, brief alcohol, casino - Freeform, more characters later on, more to come - Freeform, mostly lighthearted
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:09:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25407427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaltwaterJanuary/pseuds/SaltwaterJanuary
Summary: A collection of travels, with various characters and various adventures.
Relationships: Amy Rose/Sonic the Hedgehog, Blaze the Cat/Silver the Hedgehog, Dr. Eggman | Dr. Robotnik & Metal Sonic, Espio the Chameleon & Vector the Crocodile, Knuckles the Echidna & Rouge the Bat, Mighty the Armadillo & Ray the Flying Squirrel, Ray the Flying Squirrel & Marine the Raccoon, Rouge the Bat & Shadow the Hedgehog, Vanilla the Rabbit/Vector the Crocodile
Kudos: 23





	1. Camping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Silver and Blaze go camping together.

_Many Travels:_

_Campfire_

"Hey, Blaze?"

The sounds of the crackling fire continued without interruption.

"Blaze…"

The crickets around them chirped in ignorance of the two campers.

"Blaze, you there?"

An owl hooted nearby. It sent chills up Silver's spine, seeing how intently she was staring into the firelight- as she stood over it. How focused on the flames she was, and how ignorant of the rest of the world.

"Blaze, are you okay?"

With a small startled sound, she looked over at him and answered," What, what is it?"

"Oh," he rubbed the back of his quills. "You just seemed so lost."

"I wasn't lost. I knew very well where I was."

"And where were you?"

"Back home in my palace. Long ago. The first time I remember seeing a flame dance on the candlestick as my mother lead me to my room. I must've been frightened, but I remember feeling calmed as I gazed up at her, watching the light flicker in her eyes."

Silver watched her with wide eyes. "Wow. That- that's a vivid memory. You must be a really good storyteller."

"I told you. I knew where I was. I just described what I saw there. "

"Oh. You make it sound easy!"

She watched the fire again, but not finding herself there in the palace anymore. "It's not that hard. Only if you make it that way." She turned her head to look at him. He saw the flames flickering in her eyes, and felt the calm she had felt years ago. "Where were you, Silver?"

"When?"

"Just now. As I was in the palace."

He closed his eyes, placing his hands on his knees and taking a deep breath of smoky air.

"I was sitting here on this log, watching you with curiosity and worry, and calling your attention as the night sounds resounded."

"That was nicely done, for a beginner."

He puffed out his fluffy chest. "I know."

They laughed a bit awkwardly at one another, but didn't acknowledge the fact that they were both feeling the same.

"I-I'm glad that you came here…with me," Silver breathed out at once.

She nodded slightly. "Yes. I'm glad that I came with you as well."

"Really?"

"Yes."

She glanced up at the placement of the stars and moon. "It is getting late."

"Yeah…but wait a minute. We haven't had marshmallows yet."

"I don't care for any, but you may have some."

"Well, thanks, Blaze. But I don't want to eat them if you aren't-"

"I'm fine. Go ahead."

"Alright…" he opened the bag with caution, as if expecting an explosion. Instead the marshmallows tumbled out onto the log and the grass. "Oops."

Blaze reached down and returned them to the log. "Here."

Silver nodded his thanks and picked a cleaner marshmallow.

"Do you have a stick?"

"No, I kinda forgot that part…"

"Here." Blaze took it in her hand. "Do you like it burnt?"

"Usually."

She lit her palm and the marshmallow with it, and just as suddenly she extinguished the flame, holding it out for him to blow off.

He did so, and took it with a smile. "Thank you."

She nodded in response.

A few minutes passed, and when they figured they had nothing else to do, Blaze headed for her tent.

"I'm going to sleep now. Good night, Silver."

"Good night, then."

For a few moments after her entry, he sat there and gazed at the stars.

The noises around continued around him in orchestra, but he didn't hear a thing.

He seemed to be lost in thought, but really he knew where he was.

He was out in the stars. Walking, flying among them. Staring down at that small campsite and watching over Blaze in her sleep, making sure that nothing would harm her.

He wished on a shooting star that nothing ever would.


	2. Archaeology

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Knuckles and Rouge explore some ancient archaeology relating to Knuckles' ancestry.

Many Travels:

Archaeology

" _Wow_." He breathed, his voice nearly shaking.

The towering, but incomplete, structures around were painted and carved with multiple colors, making them stand out even more among the small pines surrounding. The structures, altogether, made up what looked to be a large pavillion, as the tops came together many, many feet above. Or, all the tops would come together. As it was, some of the tops did not meet up, as they never were built to the length of the others. The inside of the structures were just as carved, just as painted, as the outside was, except easier to view as it was at eye level.

As they walked towards the center, looking up at the incomplete ceiling, and around at the colorful walls, both of them were filled with a sense of awe.

Except one of them felt awe much more strongly than the other.

"I just...I can't believe it. To think that the other day I had no idea this existed in echidna civilization."

"Well, not to burst your bubble, but my life is no different because of it."

"Shush, Rouge." As he got into the center, he closed his eyes and just listened to the sounds of nature bouncing off of the walls, sort of like an amphitheater because of the missing top. "Just, be quiet a minute."

Rouge rolled her eyes and took a look around the place, not stopping to admire the paintings. The structure itself did not hold much beauty to her, even though its size impressed her. She was more concerned with what it _could_ hold. Looking down at the ground beneath her, she saw that the soil was covered in moss, but still damp from the past night's rain. It was not going to be hard to dig through it, perhaps finding something valuable under the surface. She licked her glossy lips in anticipation of what could be.

The sound of Knuckles whistling softly made her lose focus for a moment, turning to look at the echidna. His eyes were still closed, his arms were still by his sides, he seemed to be focused solely on listening, on whistling back some strange melody to the sky.

It was all very strange to her, and made her somewhat uncomfortable. She tried to shift focus back to her _real_ purpose for being there.

Looking back down at the ground, she tried to tune her senses to look for anything valuable beneath the surface. At first, she couldn't detect anything different, and for a moment she wondered if she should just dig around and hope she got lucky. Until it happened that she _did_ feel that there were several items, buried a few feet away, towards the farthest corner of that place. She went straight over to it and started digging.

Knuckles, meanwhile, had moved from the center of the structures to the left wall, looking at the paintings and carvings with a mixture of sorrow and pride. "It's still hard to believe I hadn't found this place until today…" he muttered to himself. He was about to call over Rouge to have her take a look at the walls, see what she thought, before he realized that he would rather have a moment in silence to look at it himself. Besides, one glance at her told him that she was much too busy with her own personal agenda rather than his own.

The walls seemed to tell the story of a small tribe of echidnas that were at war amongst themselves.

"Chief Amaecon, how many times are we going to argue about this before you will listen?"

"As long as it takes for you to understand that _I_ am the leader. I am the one that makes the decisions for us all. And I know what's best."

"Yes, but even then, the leader must listen to those he is leading. He must take into consideration what they suggest, too. Isn't caring about those things what marks a good leader?"

"Yes. I _have_ thought and considered it already. I've already determined that it's not going to work. Thank you for the idea, Gregire. You may go."

"...but maybe you haven't considered that if we don't split the wealth among the people, too, then it makes it dangerous for all of us if something happens to the leader, or if the people disagree with the leader of its use?"

"I think what you are really doing is doubting my leadership."

"No, I don't mean that, I just mean for the best of us-"

"For the best of yourself." Chief Amaecon gave him a stern look, that seemed to pierce into his heart. "See, I know that if control of the wealth goes to the people, they will only become greedy and power thirsty. You are dismissed, Gregire."

With nothing left to convince Amaecon, Gregire left the leader's presence.

In the next night, below the pale waning moon, Gregire gathered some of those closest to him to discuss a course of action.

"I have a very bad feeling about it. If Chief Amaecon becomes too arrogant, if he becomes impatient with us...it's just becoming too tyrannical. We could be overtaken."

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

"I suggest that...there is only one thing left to do. We must separate from the rest of the tribe. Though, I do hate to say it."

Whispers spread around the small circle for awhile, until several moments later everything fell silent. Everyone there had came to the same conclusion, but no one dared to say it aloud. They were going to have to split, and do it silently.

That night, they gathered up what they had, and they left.

Many years passed, and they had settled into a small area of land, in the midst of a forest, where they hoped they would not be found. Over the years they developed their own way of life, making use of the forest around them. Over the years, they created their own stories, songs, and chants. Over the years, their small tribe of echidnas grew into a much larger one, and they taught their children what they had been through,and what they had created out of it.

In the center of their village, they began to build a pavilion- a place where they could come together harmoniously and gather.

But it never was completed, and the harmony did not last.

One day the tribe that they had left discovered, miles off, the structure that they were building, as it stood higher above the rest of the little village. The leader, Amaecon, did not like to see that those that had opposed him were prospering so well. And so he sent in his own tribe, destroying most of what they had built, and those who were not killed were forced to either flee and wander alone, or to surrender and return to their original tribe.

Many chose to flee and wander alone.

"Hey, Knuckie~" A voice called, ending the trance that the walls had put him in.

"Yeah, Rouge? What is it?" Knuckles answered, impatient.

"Look what I found," she sang.

He turned and saw that she had unearthed several things- most of them shiny, despite the dirt that covered them. There were a few gems, it seemed. Small, slightly shining red and gold pieces that fit easily into the palm of Rouge's hand- where she was determined to keep them. There were also a few less shiny things, like some sort of rod, some carved stones, and some whistle instrument.

For once, Knuckles was somewhat pleased with Rouge's treasure hunting skills. Though he would only give her half the credit, since he did find the area in the first place.

"Wow. You- you actually did pretty well."

"I know, thank you. While you were over there getting lost in the walls, I got straight to business."

"But, Rouge, that was not my purpose of being here in the first place." He walked over to the place that she was and looked at the carved stones, seeing that it was some kind of song that was written. It must have been their song. " _This_ was my purpose for being here."

"Sure, whatever," she waved a dismissive hand at him, the one that was not occupied with the gemstones. "As long as I get to keep _these_ I'll be fine."

Knuckles looked up from the stone abruptly. "You can't keep them. They belong to the tribe that once resided here. That was probably the only wealth they ever could find."

"So?" She turned an oblivious ear in puzzlement. "They're all gone now, anyways!"

"Yes, but you can't just rob a dead man's grave!" He gave her a look that let her know he was not going to drop the matter.

She knew she wasn't getting anywhere this time. Her ears drooped noticeably. "...I don't see any graves around h-"

"Rouge."

She dropped the gemstones and walked away from them angrily. "Fine. Have it your way, but there's no reason for me to stick around now. See ya!" With that, she began flapping her velvety wings and took off through the incomplete roof of the structures.

He was going to shout after her, but realized that she might as well go anyway. He buried the items back, patting the moss back down to make it blend back in with the ground.

With a sigh, he stood up and looked up at the sky through the center. "Well, if only you had some interest in history and archaeology. You might understand then."

He walked out from the unfinished pavilion and with a final, low whistle he glided away.


	3. Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Chaotix Detective Agency go on a walk in the woods...and they're lost.

Many Travels:

Lost

They were somewhere. Somewhere between trail AB and AD. Or perhaps they were nowhere near that at all.

Charmy was enjoying the moment immensely compared to his partners, flying around and looking wide-eyed for the next trail markings, always telling the other two that," We're almost there, I think. I _think_ we're almost there."

Espio and Vector were not much happier with the comment.

Espio held the map and tried to find something- really anything- that resembled the markings and figures on the map, but no matter how hard he stretched the truth of what he was seeing, nothing really looked similar at all. Just a whole lot of trees and plants, and not much of anything else.

Vector was trying to get some sort of signal on his device, but of course, they were out in nature. Nature would not provide signals for his benefit, and he knew this. But he kept trying regardless.

"Guys, this really isn't so bad. Just think, maybe we'll find something no one's ever found before!" Charmy insisted. It was quite obvious to his partners that his outlook on the whole thing was a very positive one. At this point Vector began to wonder if Charmy would consider getting stranded boatless in the river "fun" and "exciting".

"The chances of that are very unlikely, but alright. I'm just trying to figure out what idiot designed this park and its maps. Naming a trail by letters is very confusing, and not having brightly-colored markings every half mile or so is even worse. It's like that time we tried to put that drawer together, none of the instructions are clear enough."

"Hmph, that was one heck of a drawer, though. I hope we never have to buy another one," Vector muttered.

"But that's besides the point. Charmy, you might think it's fun now, but it will be quite dangerous if we're still lost out here when the sun goes down. As our tracker, I suggest you look harder," Espio explained. "Besides, you were supposed to be the one to help us stay on track in the first place."

"I know, I know. We'll get outta here by sundown!" Charmy exclaimed."But just look at how beautiful this forest is!"

"Yes, I know. But that is not our main concern. We're trying to survive."

Sure enough, the forest _was_ a beautiful place. The setting light of the sun made the dark trees look mystical and strangely serene. The songs of the evening doves surrounded the forest and made direction seem even more distant and lost. Maybe they _were_ even more lost than before. And that's why Espio could not focus on the scenery.

HIs sense of urgency was only pushed farther by the position of the sun.

He gave a slightly worried look to Vector, but the crocodile never saw it as he was too busy with his pointless device.

"Does anyone remember if we were facing the sun earlier?" Espio tried.

But nobody replied, and he supposed that was his answer. "How could I not have been paying attention?" He wondered to himself. But he realized that it had an obvious answer, too.

"Charmy."

"Yeah?" The bee was distracted momentarily, pausing to watch a squirrel scramble up into a tree. If Espio had not been watching, they might have accidentally left him behind there.

"Do you have a lead yet?"

"No...do you?"

Espio stopped himself from facepalming in favor of moving on. "Come on, let's just stop getting distracted."

Charmy moved on, but his mind still wandered.

As they continued to walk along the trail, Espio began to realize that the trails that they were taking were continually becoming less defined then when they had started. He began to wonder if anyone had been down them in a long while. The forest seemed to have become increasingly thick and less transparent- it nearly hid the light of the sunset. It seemed rather eerie.

"You think we wandered into some abandoned trails or somethin'?" Vector asked quietly. He had put his device away in favor of looking for a trail marking by then.

"I...hope not." Espio tried to look up at the sky, but it was covered in dark leaves. "We need to start using something to mark where we've already been."

"Well, if it makes things any better, I think the last two turns we took were right," Charmy interjected.

"They obviously weren't right," Vector mumbled.

"No, I mean the directional right."

"I knew what you meant," Vector snapped.

"Well, we should probably head back the way we came. Come on now," Espio advised.

They took their few turns back, but could not remember which path they had taken afterwards, thus they ended up with their blind guess.

Thus Espio began to question if they would ever get back to their van.

The crickets were softly beginning to chirp, a steady reminder that sunset would not last forever. The birds that used to be flying around suddenly looked an awful lot like bats. Vector and Espio exchanged worried glances.

"You guys, don't be so nervous! It'll be alright!" Charmy exclaimed.

"We can't be too sure of that, Charmy. You may not have experience being out, lost, at night, but I do. I know it's not as exciting as it sounds," Espio said, guarding himself closely. He was beginning to feel more paranoid about it by the second.

Vector shushed him suddenly, and he seemed to give Espio the inevitable warning glance. "I-I thought I heard somethin', but maybe it was just the wind…"

"Stop it, Vector," Charmy laughed. "You're just trying to make it worse."

"No, I"m really not. I really thought I heard somethin'."

"What? What did it sound like?" Espio whispered.

"Oh, y'know, what everything sounds like in the woods. The leaves were shaking real hard," the crocodile replied, still staring out into that direction like some kind of distracted dog.

The leaves rustled again, and this time they all heard it.

Espio drew nearer to his companions, preparing his shruiiken at his side should he have to use it. As if they could not defend themselves.

Whatever had caused the noise, it did not happen again for a long while. It felt strangely anti-climatic- the opposite of what it felt like should've happened. Not that they weren't grateful that nothing became of it.

"I guess we should go back to that one trailhead. This doesn't seem like the right way, anyway," Espio stated, still in the sort of whisper he had used before. He didn't want whatever it was to come any closer.

"Yeah...quietly," Vector added, shooting an annoyed look at Charmy.

"What? What's that have to do with me?" was the bee's only response.

Vector shook his head and chose to ignore this.

They got back to the previous fork in the road, not speaking a word the entire time. They chose a different path, hoping this one would finally take them back to their (probably now overheated) van.

By now the sun was in its boldened form- the way it emphasizes itself during the last moments it spends on the horizon. The colors of the sunset were magnified, more like a fire than simply a light in the sky.

"Alright, I'm going to admit it," Espio breathed. "I'm really getting worried now."

"We all knew it, Espio," Vector replied. He was beginning to look very defeated himself. "I wish I had the kid's enthusiasm."

As soon as they had gotten to a place where "the coast was clear", Charmy had immediately resumed his positivity, flying around and sing-songing like nothing had happened. Like they weren't totally lost in a forest.

"We'd all be dead if we had that kid's positivity, Vector," Espio responded, quietly laughing. At least now he was so worried that he was beginning to find things funny.

The two reptiles walked alongside each other, Espio being the most cautious to keep an eye on Charmy. Vector was busy with his own issues, watching for something that resembled familiar.

Then they heard what sounded like a river, a river that they knew they had not heard before, and both of them realized that they would be spending all night in the forest. It was a horrible realization, but all at once somewhat relieving. They wouldn't have to question it anymore, just prepare.

Vector decided to break the news. "Well, Charmy, I think we better just get back to that fork in the road, and, y'know...prepare for the night. It's getting pointless to keep on moving now. I know that it's gonna be hard, but-"

"No, wait, don't go back yet! I hear a river up ahead, and maybe we can get a good view!" He exclaimed, zooming forward to see it himself.

Espio and Vector followed after him, too weary to argue with him.

"I hope it's not too dangerous at this hour to be near the river. I mean, most animals wait until evening to go near the rivers…" Espio muttered.

Vector prodded him in the side with his elbow. "Eh, don't worry. They'll hear him coming a mile away."

"True." He realized how strange it was that they were so calm about the whole ordeal. Apparently they adapted quite well. There was no use panicking now anyway. In his mind, he began thinking of all the ways that they could prepare for it, but unfortunately most of the ways he remembered required material things. Unfortunate.

They found the small river- really more of a creek- in a place where the trees were sparser, and the area was much more open. They could actually see the sky now, a lot clearer, and there obviously wasn't much time to nightfall. No use in worrying about it now, Espio reminded himself.

Charmy stopped flying around and sat down on the mossy ground. He looked out of place, sitting still all of a sudden, but it was a welcome sight anyway. He seemed to be watching the sky. The other two didn't interrupt him, even though it was a big waste of time. It would have been a bigger waste of energy to tell him. So, they just stood there. And it was strangely serene; lost out in the woods at night, but still staring up at the sky like time didn't matter. Espio looked over to see if Vector was thinking the same, but he didn't look his way.

At last, it was Vector who decided to break the moment. "Charmy, we really gotta go now. We need to find our way back to the fork before it's too late."

Charmy turned his head to him, and mumbled something about, "Ok, one minute." He stayed there for a moment though, as Vector and Espio turned to leave, trying to urge the bee to hurry. He gave the sky a last look, at the darkened reds and oranges, and somehow, in someway, it reminded him that there were snacks back in their van. And it was then he realized he was hungry.

"Espio, Vector…"

By the tone of his voice, they both instinctively looked over at him and expected trouble.

Though now hovering in the air, he mimicked the motion of scuffing his shoe in the dirt. "I think I know which way we should go…"

Vector folded his arms. "Ya mean to the van?"

"Yeah…"

"And why didn't you tell us this before?!"

"Well, I-um...it was fun being 'lost', dont'cha think?"

"No," Vector growled. "But let's get goin'."

They headed off that way, lead by Charmy, who suddenly lost his "guilty act" and laughed.

Espio eyed him suspiciously. "Charmy, you knew all along and just worried us for the sake of 'fun'?"

"Well...sorta." His antennae went down, resuming the act. "I mean, I was always going to tell you eventually. I-"

Espio hushed him before he could continue. "I get it, I get it. But that doesn't mean I'm excusing it, Charmy. We'll talk about this in the van."

"Oh, okay, Espio," Charmy replied, trying not to laugh again at his own prank.

Espio rolled his eyes at the young detective...but at least now he knew that they wouldn't be camping tentless that night. He was grateful for that.


	4. Sailing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mighty and Ray go sailing, but the trip gets hijacked by Captain Marine.

Many Travels:

Sailing

The strong gusts of wind, the waves and the horizon were the only things that were really real. Everything else was in another world now, a world far, far off. None of it mattered.

He had finally gotten the boat in course, the sails adjusted, the lines fixed up. And, just for a moment, he could breathe in the ocean air and forget about the rest.

"What do you think, Ray?" He muttered at last.

Ray couldn't hear him over the sound of the waves, so Mighty had to reiterate himself.

"It's all clear sailing, as far as I can see!" He eventually replied, balancing himself on top of the sail mast, looking out at the endless blue as far as he could possibly see.

"Good!" Mighty said. "But that's not what I meant! What do you think of sailing, Ray?"

"Oh, it's great out here!"

Mighty smiled and turned back to look into the waters again. The boat had the same continuous motion- the slight, side-to-side sort of movement that made everything seem sleepy and peaceful at the same time. It moved along the ocean at a rather slow, unhurried rate, but Mighty didn't mind that. There was no rush to get back to land, according to the skies' foretelling.

"How long do you think we'll be out here?" Ray asked. He was becoming used to shouting by now, which was definitely not the usual way of speaking for him.

"That depends! How long do you want to be out here? I mean, I was planning to stay out...maybe overnight? But what do you think?"

"Ooh, I don't know about being out here overnight…How about until evening maybe?"

"That's fine! I'll just have to find a way to steer us around a bit earlier."

"Where are we heading back to?"

"Hopefully that place a little bit east of that one island? You remember that place?"

"I think so."

"Yeah."

Mighty lied down at the front, flat on his shell, and looked up at the blue above.

And he thought about water and its relationship to the sky; how water absorbs into the clouds, and then the clouds return the water back down to the earth, to the oceans. How the cycle could go on and on and on, and no one would know which way it began in the first place. Did the water originally belong to the surface, or did it all belong to the clouds from the start? He thought about how it was such a beautiful relationship- that the sky and the earth could share so peacefully in something. Like a favor that was always returned. And they were so cheerful about it. It brought a serene smile to his face, to think that something like that could even exist. That everything worked out in nature so well. Despite the fact that nature could do terrible things, here it was doing beautiful things, too. And he could see it, and feel it, the ways that it-

"Hey, Mighty," Ray's voice spoke up. "When we get to the islands, can we go to that one place?"

"Oh, sure. You mean the place we visited last time?"

"Yeah."

"Sure, that's a great idea."

He couldn't exactly remember the direction his thoughts were going in anymore, so he tried to get lost thinking about something else.

The birds that sometimes flapped by were pretty. Maybe not in a physical way, but just...in their simplicity. They didn't need beautiful colors or anything like that, all they needed to do was fish and they were happy. It must have been nice- knowing their purpose so clearly. Just living each day, out on the winds, and just knowing that-

"Is- is it alright if we get those fruits from that one place like we did last time?"

"Sure, Ray," Mighty sighed.

"Oh, sorry. I don't mean to bother you or anything. I was just wondering and-"

"I know you don't mean to bother me," Mighty gave a reassuring smile up in his direction to prove it. "I'm just thinking is all. But you can ask if you need to."

"Okay, sorry."

"It's fine."

Clouds, themselves, were so fascinating besides the water. Just drifting, drifting, drifting on. Endlessly. He wondered if it would be amazing or exhausting to live like that. Then again, it wasn't like him to stay in one place for too long, either. Like the clouds, he had to drift somewhere to really-

"Mighty." The tone of Ray's voice startled him this time.

"What is it, buddy?" He sat up, turning to face the little flying squirrel that was still balancing on the mast.

"There's something over there!" Ray said, climbing down from the mast frantically.

"Shush, it's alright. It's probably just another boat, Ray. The ocean isn't just for us." He stood up and tried to look out as far as he could, but could only manage to see a small black dot moving on the water, far, far off. But moving quickly. "It might not even be in our path of travel, Ray."

"But it has a flag!" Ray squeaked, rocking the boat trying to peer over the edge. "I mean, not just a normal flag...it's a crossbones flag!"

"How did you manage to see that?"

"It's easier to see from higher up. But, Mighty, Mighty, what are we going to do?"

"Alright, first off, take a deep breath. Don't just assume the worst here, it could be many other things...Let's wait and see when it gets closer." He pressed the edge of his hand up against his forehead, trying to give his eyes shade. He soon realized that the ship was approaching at a pace that made it pointless to even try to see it from afar. Not when they would be seeing it up close so soon.

Sure enough, a large, dark gray ship was coming up out of nowhere, a crossbones on its sail. It didn't seem to be directly in their path, but it was close enough by it to cause alarm. If the ship didn't hit their sailboat over, the wake caused by it would surely do that.

It was a very rapid change from the peaceful sailing a moment ago.

"Mighty, what should we do?" Ray asked, now nervously pacing the floors.

"Hold on, hold on...I'll think of something," Mighty reassured. As best he could at least. "Why don't you glide over there and see if they seem like the...uncooperative type?"

"Well, they sure seem like it from out here!" Ray exclaimed.

"Yes, but we can't presume...besides, we need to know what we might be facing here. Please, Ray, just glide over it and see what's going on, okay? Hurry."

Ray eventually nodded, hoping that he would be small enough to go unnoticed by the ship's captain. He glided up on the winds, looking out carefully as he approached the mass.

As soon as he got over it, he saw that the entire inside of the ship was just a big empty deck, no crew or any forms of life around. Whoever was controlling it must have been in the captain's quarters. The not-so-great part of that, was that the ship itself was built exactly like some sort of pirate's ship. Which wouldn't be the most comforting thing to report back.

He rushed back to the sailboat, accidentally rocking the boat hard upon landing.

"I-I didn't see a crew or anything...no one at all, actually. But- but why is someone boating all the way out here, towards us, by themselves?" Ray panted.

"I'm not sure," Mighty sighed. He wished that at least half of the world could be as peaceful as he would have liked to be.

But he needed to come up with a plan quick, for Ray's sake. Forget wishful thinking for a moment. Stay calm.

"Alright, why don't we-"

Before he could get the words out, another voice interrupted.

"Ahoy, mates!"

"Who- who is it?" Mighty shouted back. He was surprised at the friendliness of the captain's voice...and the younger tone that they had.

"It's the great Cap'n Marine here, ya bloke. You never heard a' me?"

By now the boat had come up close by them, though thankfully it had turned far enough away to avoid too much of a wake for them. Though, they still held onto the mast for all it was worth.

"I...can't say I have." Mighty's ears drooped a bit at the disruption. But, hey, at least they seemed friendly and weren't trying to rob anyone.

"Well, ya heard a' me today! Ya look like ya got a pretty scrawny ship there, do ya think ya need some help gettin' in to shore?" By now, the 'captain' had made an appearance on her deck, peering out at them from the side. She was this young, orange-and-brown raccoon, and Mighty was not too sure that she was even supposed to be out on the ocean by herself. Apparently she was anchored already. It was then that Mighty took the opportunity to anchor his own boat before the wake pushed them yards away.

"No thank you, miss. Our 'scrawny' ship is doing just fine. Thank you for asking though. I think I've got it." Mighty nodded as sincerely as he could as he finished heaving the anchor in. Hopefully that sort of gesture would get across to this 'captain' Marine.

"Ya, whatever you say! What are ya both doin' out in this blue, anyway?"

"Um...well, we were just sailing peacefully and-"

"That _is_ a really cool ship…" Ray's voice spoke up sheepishly. Apparently he wasn't so skittish anymore.

Mighty supposed he had been thinking about the boat the whole time, and had just now gotten over his shyness and said so. He tended to speak up very slowly like that, often when the subject was already changed. Only Mighty really knew what the little flying squirrel was truly like when nobody else was around.

"I know! Ain't she a beaut? I built her all by myself!" They couldn't see much of her body, but Mighty was pretty sure that she had pointed to herself proudly while saying this.

He could tell that she was a liar, and pretty much a show-off right away. He didn't like the feeling that she carried with her at all. He looked at Ray to see if he was picking up on this, but it seemed Ray was much too busy being fascinated by the boat to notice.

Ray had a tendency to do that- and for a minute Mighty was trying to think of a way to get him to get back to his...usual quiet ways. Because there was no stopping him if he did start taking an interest in something.

Apparently even in this short amount of time, he had missed some chunk of conversation. Because the next thing he knew, Marine and Ray (but mostly Marine) were discussing the different types of boats, and which ones were best, and which ones were better for oceans but horrible for rivers, and what kind of boats they had been on before.

Mighty was impressed that Ray was keeping up a conversation for as long as they were, but then again...a lot of what he was doing was just nodding and listening.

For a short but sweet moment, Mighty mused about how he was so proud of Ray for growing up to be such a good listener. And so respectful too, albeit a bit chatty when some circumstances came up. But Mighty was very proud of how much Ray had grown in that way since they first met.

Then he remembered that if they didn't start moving again soon, they would be out during the night, and Ray wouldn't have liked that.

"Hey, guys? Thanks for the chat and all, Captain Marine, but we've got to go off sailing again...It was nice to meet you." He automatically began to reel in the anchor that he had just put into the water, hoping that Marine wouldn't protest anymore.

"Aw, have you got to? It gets pretty lonely out here on the seven seas…" Marine said, ears drooping at the news.

"Sorry, but we need to be back before dark!" As soon as the anchor was in, the sail started to pick up, and Mighty was careful to adjust the lines so that they'd be headed the right way.

"Well, wait! If you need to get back in a jiffy, I can help!" Marine called.

"Oh...how so?" Mighty looked over at Ray and saw that, unfortunately, he was all for whatever this plan was going to be.

He must have really loved that boat.

The next thing Mighty knew, they had hoisted the sailboat up onto Marine's much larger boat, and they were heading the way that Mighty had directed. He was just hoping that this kid knew _how_ to drive a boat well. Because he had no idea how to drive a motor-driven boat at all.

Ray was basically taking in the full scale of it, and briefly asked Marine about it, although quietly.

Mighty was not particularly thrilled with riding on a boat with a new acquaintance- especially on the sort of boat that they were on. But at the same time, he pretty much understood by then that she was harmless...albeit annoying. Still, it was times like those Mighty started to consider traveling alone a better idea than bringing Ray along. There wouldn't be half as much interruption. Though he would never admit it out loud.

He lied down on the deck, hands behind his head, and tried his best to drown out the motor noises with his thoughts.

And he thought about the sun; how at times it seemed annoying as it got into his eyes, but always made up for it just by being there. How the entire world would just die in the dark and cold without it, yet no one really thought about it much. Not until it gave them a sunburn or...got in their eyes. It was tragic to think of it that way. Sort of like other things he supposed. Like how he didn't always appreciate his little traveling companion, and how sometimes he found him more annoying than anything else. He did love peaceful quiet, after all, and Ray was always a talker alone with him. But often he didn't really think about how dark and cold his world would be without the flying squirrel. Ray was, quite fittingly, a ray of sunshine in Mighty's life. And he realized he needed to think of it that way more often.

Maybe Ray had gotten them dragged onto the boat, but it was worth it to see him happy. Even if Mighty couldn't stand loud motors and even louder self-proclaimed 'captains'. At least they'd be able to get to the island before dark.

Mighty smiled up to the sky.

"...rode in a ferry. Have ya ever done that?"

"I think I did once. It was...a long time ago, I think."

Ray was standing next to the captain's quarters, though not really paying too much attention to the captain. He was looking up at the mast. "Where did you get that flag?"

"Oh, it's a big story. I took it from my pirate enemies, ya see. Yeah, big blokes they were, and they-"

The conversation faded out as Mighty thought about the contrast in their voices. It was almost funny. One of them was so loud and proud of themselves (and their really fabricated stories) and the other was barely audible from where Mighty was lying down.

He looked over at the two, and since Ray happened to look over at the same time, he smiled and nodded back at him. Ray returned the gesture, and it was surprising how much that silent exchange communicated between them.

Mighty was fine staying on the detour, if that's what Ray wanted. And Ray was thankful for the agreement, never wanting to cause too much trouble for his companion.

Mighty lied back and soaked in the sun rays.

And hoped that Marine actually knew what she was doing.


	5. Honeymoon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amy and Sonic go on a trip, and she pretends it's a honeymoon.

Many Travels:

Honeymoon

The dates on her calendar, marked up in red hearts up until that particular day, brought her more excitement than any other day in the entire year had. She nearly exploded the moment she realized that, well, today was the day. Today was the day. She spun around, senses spiraling out of control, flopping down onto her bed and hugging her heart-shaped pillow to her chest. She imagined that she was in a shojo, a hopeless romantic girl in love with the hero, the hero who she thought she was never good enough for. Well, in this shojo, she finally got him. She finally won him over. She was good enough, all along. She squeaked over the thrill of it all.

She heard a knock on her door, and it snapped her out of her fantasies. She sighed deeply, standing up- a bit dizzy- to answer it.

"Hello~" she giggled, nervously. "Would you care to come inside?"

"Hey, Amy," Sonic replied, laughing with a different sort of nervousness. "Though, remember now. Just because I want you to go with me on this trip, it's not, er, well, it's not romantic, ok?"

Amy's face was visibly disappointed, but she blushed it off and motioned him inside anyway. There was, perhaps, a good chance that she could change his mind about that before the end of it. "Well, okay, but I'm still going to _refer_ to it as a honeymoon."

Sonic laughed as he brushed past her to get inside. "Yeah, but don't get ahead of yourself. You still haven't gotten me convinced for a _date_ yet, let alone a wedding."

"I know, I know." She walked in after him, sliding the door closed.

He immediately took up the loveseat of hers, without asking permission, knowing quite well that Amy would not mind at all. And she didn't. She stepped back, sighing, trying to pretend that she wasn't gazing at him in her affections. She remembered her manners where he did not. "Do you care for anything to drink?"

"Nah, but the sooner we head off, the better," he yawned.

"I'm more than ready," she sighed. She ran off to get her bags from the bedroom.

He glanced around her living room while she was gone, hoping not to be caught in the act. The room was organized and clean, and had the exact sort of vibe to it that Amy seemed to carry with her. Even if he had randomly been shown this house, he would have known who it belonged to. The walls were a light gray color, brightened up with pink wall decor throughout. There were a few photographs on the walls of all of their friends too, and it brightened the room further. There were bookshelves and cabinets along the walls, besides the two loveseats, and Sonic didn't understand how she did it, but there was no wasted space in the room.

Amy came back with two luggage bags in hand, still beaming from ear to ear. "Alright, I'm all set!"

"Good. The flickies will be happy to see you so early." He zipped to the door, opening it for her before dashing outside. She went out into the yard with a sigh and prepared herself for travel.

Sonic opened up his arms hesitantly for her. She blushed as she settled herself in his arms, putting her bags into her lap. "Ok...I'm ready." She closed her eyes and dared not open them as he started off running.

"Hold on tight." He tried his best not to look at her as he ran, but it was tempting. It was always tempting to look at the people he carried when he ran, as everyone reacted so differently at the speed of sound.

Eventually, the temptation got the best of him, and he peered down at her, if only for a split-instant. And she had her eyes open. She had this wide-eyed wonder on her face, that was so Amy-like of her, and fearless...and it made Sonic glad. He looked away and still the image stayed in his mind.

As the destination approached and he dug in his heels to stop, he heard her let out the squeal she had probably been keeping in. "Was it too fast for you?"

"No, no. That was amazing!" She exclaimed. She had this sweet passion in her voice that he admired, if only subconsciously.

"Well….I'm glad. Let's get going." He started walking off, admiring the new scenery around him as immensely as he usually did. He brought in a breath of island air into his lungs and exhaled it slowly.

She took up her bags and followed him.

"Is the resort far?"

"Eh, not that far. 'Least not for me."

"Of course not for _you_." She giggled.

The Flicky Islands were always a beautiful place to visit, but particularly now, as the flickies were flocking back to the island for their summer stay. Amy had never been during the time the flocks came in, and so she was rather honored to have been invited to go with Sonic there.

The ocean breeze was a gentle reminder that she should probably stay in the moment as much as she could, before the trip was over too soon.

A group of flickies soared overhead and sent Amy's heart whirling. She pointed and wordlessly cheered for fear of startling them. Sonic nodded his head in appreciation.

The resort- a small, charming hotel with more of an emphasis on the gardens and scenery than the hotel itself- was within sight, and both of them found themselves running towards it in eagerness to settle in.

Sonic got to the door first and opened it gingerly. Amy swooned at the sight and blushed furiously, much to Sonic's surprise. "I was just being polite..." he murmured as he followed after her.

The lobby to the hotel had a large, netted area overhead, sort of like a butterfly garden, where flickies were flying about and nesting in the trees that were provided there. The front desk was wooden, and had twisted branches that ran over the counter and made it look much more wild than it otherwise would have- even with the birds flying all around it.

Amy gaped at it all as they approached the front desk. Sonic, who had made the reservations, began talking to the employee there- a thin gray wolf, wearing a pullover vest- and Amy was too in awe of everything else to hear the conversation.

There was this small wishing fountain in the center of the area, and with careful movements (so as to avoid startling any flicky), she approached it. She pulled out a small ring from the top part of her luggage, and she held it for a moment, just to wish upon it first. The words that quietly left her mouth were, "I wish that Sonic would fall in love with me on this trip." But the words that were in her heart specified, "I wish Sonic was _already_ in love with me, and he'd just now reveal it."

She tossed the ring in and watched it sink to the marble bottom with all of the other wishes.

Sonic walked up to her and tapped her on the shoulder. "You ready to see our room?"

"Yes!"

They both got into the elevator, looking around at first to make sure no flickies were in there, and then Sonic pressed the "4" button.

Amy glanced at him in nervous habit as the elevator rose, wondering if he found it awkward to be standing together so silently, but he just stood there, checking his nonexistent watch impatiently.

As the door opened up, they walked out into the hall- it was a short one, with glass windows for walls and dark green carpet- and Sonic led her to their hotel room, number 403. He unlocked the door, and the two made their way in.

It was a small room- as most rooms at that resort were- and very narrow at the opening, but as they got into the living room area, it was much larger than it had seemed, with a wide overview of the forests and meadows and shores surrounding the hotel. The kitchen was small but acceptable, and there were two bedrooms (and one bathroom), all of which opened up back to the living room.

"Oh, it's beautiful, Sonic!" Amy put her luggage down and twirled until she fell back- purposely- onto a green armchair.

"Eh, guess it's alright," he was looking around into the bedrooms, shaking his head. "I think I'd prefer to stay outside though."

"Well, that's typical of you…"

Amy stretched and got up, picking up her luggage once again. "I'm going to put my things away, okay Sonic?"

"Sure." He seemed very restless still, and she supposed it was his eagerness to get back outside into the scenery he saw.

She went into one of the bedrooms (seeing Sonic wasn't particular, she just picked one at random) and she began to unpack. The thoughts that filled her mind were enough to keep her from deciding to color-organize the clothes into the closet, though she would have done so otherwise. After she was done, she collapsed upon the bed in an overdramatic fashion and sighed heavily.

Sure, maybe this wasn't their honeymoon, maybe this wasn't even a date according to Sonic, but to her it was at least a step in the right direction. Maybe they wouldn't share a bed, but they were sleeping in the same hotel room- and that was farther than most people got with their crush anyway. Maybe he wouldn't sneak into her room at night, while she was up journaling. Maybe he wasn't going to, in a whisper, reveal his secret feelings for her as the moonlight shone through the window. Maybe he wouldn't gently sit down on her bed, pick up his guitar, and start playing love songs for her. Maybe she wouldn't turn to him and fervently listen with all of her heart, all of her passion. Maybe they wouldn't pull close to one another and dramatically kiss as the stars twinkled outside the window, ignorant of the love that they shared. Maybe all that was made up for Hollywood screens. But...she could dream. And dreams could potentially influence reality, right?

She got up from the bed and went back into the living room, where Sonic was now lying- half-asleep- on the armchair.

"Are you ready to go out and sight-see now?" Amy asked.

"Huh? Oh, yeah...sure," was his tired response.

* * *

Soon, they were out on the shores of the Flicky Islands.

The little flocks of birds overhead looked down on them with curiosity, as Amy peered up at them in the same fashion. "Do you think we'll see Lily here?"

"You mean that little bird that came from Gamma? It's a possibility." Sonic seemed to be very nonchalant about the whole trip, but his eyes always held that wild sense of adventure within them.

The sun was low within the sky, and colors were spilt all over the clouds surrounding it. It was a beautiful sunset if Amy ever did see one, but her mind was so focused on the hedgehog beside her and the flickies all around her, that she hardly seemed to notice.

"Would you know her if you saw her?" Sonic broke the silence that had followed.

"Probably not," she blushed. "But she would remember me, I know that much."

They continued on in peaceful silence for a time, the waves crashing and drowning out their thoughts for a long time. Neither of them minded it, really. It was a nice thing to know that they had known each other long enough to remain in mutual silence without being awkward.

Amy looked over at him and gleamed. "Thank you for taking me on this little trip. It's lovely." She fluttered her eyes, hoping to herself that he noticed. "I really appreciate it."

Sonic rubbed a finger under his nose, in that strange trademark way of his. "It's not a problem, Amy. So long as you didn't try to push boundaries too much, I was happy to invite you."

"Right. Boundaries…" she laughed to herself, making Sonic increasingly uncomfortable. "Well, I try not to. But I- I really am glad to be here with you."

"And I'm glad you're here with me." He glanced at her with those adventurous eyes turned sincere, and she nearly squealed in delight.

She kept it to herself, though, because...boundaries and maturity. Right. Good things to have.

Instead, she nodded and smiled. That seemed mature. He nodded and looked out to the coast again.

* * *

As they got back to the hotel that night, they were both thoroughly tired and, had it not been for Amy's etiquette, they would have gone to bed without a word to each other.

But she slipped into his room right before he closed the door, and with a quick smile she bade him a goodnight.

"Goodnight." He was already lying back in bed, completely at home, it seemed, despite his protest of sleeping indoors. "I'll see you in the morning. Maybe we can see the forest part of the islands tomorrow, if you want. Have a good night."

"Thank you." She prepared to go, but on a quick, spontaneous whim, she peeked back in and said quickly, "I love you, Sonic."

She left before she could see his face, but she could have swore she heard a quiet, quick "I love you," in return.

She slept restlessly that night, but with sweet dreams regardless.


	6. Staycation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rouge tries to get Shadow to have fun for once, so she makes the weekend a little "staycation".   
> Warning: This chapter does have the use of alcohol in it, and one character (guess which) gets drunk.

Many Travels:

Staycation

"So...it's our weekend off. We should probably go out and, you know, make the most of it."

"Maybe. But I never really liked to 'go out' anyway," he mumbled, eyes fixed, without emotion, to some distant point on the bare wall.

"Well, do you at least want to...take a walk? Maybe in the park? We hardly go there…" She was glancing between him and the wall, trying to understand his attraction to it.

"No. But you can if you want." He didn't bother to look over at her, but he could feel that she'd shifted to lean back further into their sofa, perhaps giving up on her everlasting plan to make him leave his brooding.

"I don't feel like it either." With that, she reached for the remote and flipped through channels until she decided that she had no idea what to watch.

"Surprising for you." Despite the noise of the television, his eyes never moved. "Usually it seems you'd be begging to get out."

"Yeah, well I don't feel like nightclubbing today. And I don't feel like going to the casino, and I definitely don't have anyone to visit, and I- Oh. Have you ever seen Chao In Space 2, Shadow? Hadn't it just come out when you got to this planet?"

"To be honest, I never saw the first one. Of course, I haven't had time either."

She shot him a glance, nudging him roughly on the shoulder. "Well, guess what? You have time now! Much better than staring at the wall."

"Hmm, I'll pass. I don't really have taste for movies. Well. Unless you have The Terminator, I guess. But I don't think I care to waste my time on that today."

"Come on, it's a classic! Just give it a chance."

"Is it anything like Terminator?"

"No, but it's still fun. Come on, just try the first five minutes?"

He watched her stare and saw that there was no way out of this one. With a sigh, "Ok, ok, fine. But only because I have nothing better to do right now."

"No need to be so grumpy, geez!" She winked playfully and got up to get the first of the two movies.

Shadow watched her with reluctance, bracing himself for a very long while of being bored out of his mind. The movie was what? Two hours long?

He'd rather watch the wall and think about life for that long.

Rouge slipped the disc into their dvd player, and took her seat (perhaps a bit too close) beside Shadow.

"You don't have to be so friendly now, I need my space, especially if we're going to watch this."

"Space?" She laughed to herself, as Shadow scowled back. "Just kidding, I'll move." She adjusted herself and watched Shadow's eyes as the movie began to play.

"I'm going to hate this…."

"Just wait, Mr. Sunshine."

* * *

A few hours later, (and not one complaint from Shadow, except for the "awful CGI"), Rouge stretched overdramatically and took a risk glancing Shadow's way.

And he- surprisingly- seemed to be considering. "Not bad."

"Not bad?"

"Not bad." He stood for a moment, stretching his legs, and then asked timidly, "And you said there was a Chao In Space 2?"

Rouge could only laugh. "My, what a difference."

She got up from the sofa, moving her wings slightly to ease them out of their stiffness. "You want to get popcorn this time?"

"No, I'd rather it be chips and salsa." Without another protest, he got up from the sofa and made his way to the kitchen alongside her.

"And you want soda, I presume?" Rouge asked, looking in the refrigerator briefly (actually to find her own wine to drink, but she may as well pretend to be considerate).

"I'll get it myself, thank you."

A few minutes later, they re-entered the living room, actually prepared for movie-watching this time.

They settled themselves as they had before, and the second movie began.

* * *

By the time it was finished, the blackout curtains that sheltered their windows were no longer needed, as the sun was well below the horizon. The drink glasses and plates were empty, and Rouge may or may not have had a bit too much wine during that time span.

She got up uneasily, nonetheless, and she glanced at Shadow with slightly pained eyes.

"You liked it?"

"Yeah, I'm surprised it's nearly as good as the first. Not many series can do that."

"Surprised you're not more of a critic."

"I'm also slightly tired now."

"Oh." She stretched her wings lazily, only to fling herself down onto the sofa again. Overdramatic as always, Shadow noted, especially when slightly tipsy.

"Well, we'll have to wait, what? Another couple hundred years for the next one? That thing's never coming out."

Shadow wordlessly nodded, sinking back uncharacteristically, before immediately correcting himself.

"I see you're ready to go to bed, too...well, unless you're just a little bit uninhibited now too. I don't know. We do rent this place together, I think you should chill out around me."

"Yeah, you've been saying that. I'll let you know when that happens." He rolled his eyes and watched her in her stupor.

She laughed slightly and gazed over at him, too. Wondering for a passing moment who would break the look first.

It was she who ultimately did it, but only out of the short attention span that the alcohol had rendered her to.

"So, there's a few more hours in the evening, what do you want to do?" She tried to sit up, and succeeded by an inch.

He lifted his arms behind his head, in a powerful stretch that Rouge admired shamelessly.

"We haven't eaten yet. I'm guessing you don't feel like cooking, and I certainly don't feel like cooking...so are we ordering something?"

She giggled almost childishly. "Gee, you didn't even hesitate. Do you have something in mind?"

"Pizza," he replied unabashedly. "Of course."

"Of course."

* * *

Afterwards, Shadow was left to clean the kitchen, due to Rouge's insistence to have "just one more" glass during dinner. She wasn't quite fit for cleaning, so slightly unusual for him, he decided to let her off the hook for once. He only grumbled once of her "unrestrained bad habits" while doing so.

She might be an awful person to roommate with if you're a reserved person, but at least she usually tried.

Usually.

And at least she knew how to properly have a weekend in, it seemed.

He came back into the living room after he had finished, to find that she had stretched herself out across the entire expanse of their sofa (which wasn't much, but it was still against rules).

He gave her a scowl, but she only laughed. Typical.

"Sorry, but I was here first." She got up and propped herself against it. "Though, I guess I am ready to head off to bed, anyway."

"Good."

"I don't suppose you'd, ahem, finally like to come to bed with me?"

"No, Rouge."

"Sure?"

"Yes."

"Ok then." She picked herself up, and stumbled fervently. He took her arm, nodding to her to let him, and she smiled back at him wordlessly. Despite the possibility of seeming too polite, he guided her to her bedroom, and watched as she dragged herself into the bed.

She opened her mouth, awaiting her mind to catch up with words. He waited with slight impatience.

"If you hear anything, I-"

"I know, I know." He shook his head. "Just...goodnight, Rouge."

"Goodnight, Shad."

He turned out the light and then went to lie on the sofa a few more hours- maybe stare at that one bare place on the wall.

Maybe think and reflect on his relationship with Rouge, the way that their dynamic was strange and shifting but normal to them. Maybe he'd wonder about Rouge's habits, how they had started in the first place.

Maybe he'd think of the way that she always tried to get him to have "fun" (as she called it), when he had free time. Perhaps due to the fact that, after all, he was overly obsessed with staring into the walls. That might be concerning to some people.

So for once, he decided to just skip all of that and go straight to bed.


	7. Casino

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr. Eggman and Metal Sonic go to a casino.

Many Travels:

Casino

"They've rigged it!"

"I'm sure they have, sir."

"They've absolutely rigged it!"

"Yes, sir. Calm down, sir."

"I can't just calm down! That's exactly what they want you to do, sit down and be quiet about this-this monstrosity!"

"It is called gambling, sir."

Dr. Eggman marches off furiously, hoping, willing everyone around to see it and collectively join him to storm the management.

Instead, most of them laugh and point at an adult man, throwing an absolute tantrum over a betting game.

He growls incoherent things as he storms, things that even Metal Sonic is a little confused over.

"Sir, if it makes you feel any better, no one in this vicinity appears to be winning."

"That doesn't help, metalface." The man sits down at one of the table and chair areas, annoyed even further at the fact that these are such tiny chairs, he can hardly sit down without his legs straining in an unnatural position. In fact, he can hardly sit there at all, as the chair falls over a second later.

There is an uproar of laughter from those who had watched him, and Dr. Eggman roars his indignation at them.

Metal Sonic, unable to see the humor in his maker's humiliation, extends his arm to help the man up. Dr. Eggman takes it, rather ungratefully, and he mutters curses as he leaves the area to recompose himself.

"Ugh, is there nothing I can do in this casino other than fail and make a fool of myself?"

"There is sustenance, sir."

"Pfft, sustenance. If their food is anything like their slot machines and their chairs, it sucks horribly."

"There is a shower room."

"Are you trying to imply that I need to bathe?"

"I am simply suggesting what there is, sir."

The tall man sighs and props himself up against the far wall of the establishment.

"Which isn't much, Metal Sonic."

So, instead, he watches the other patrons waste their rings and go about their way, ignoring him entirely. He imagines it must be hard to ignore the main antagonist of all of Mobius, but they somehow do.

Metal Sonic observes, too, with quiet interest, the status of most of the other Mobians going by. "Most of them do not gamble very heavily, sir. I take note that they are not spending very much here."

"Well, they're probably poor."

"Like you now are?"

He didn't intend it as an insult, but Dr. Eggman shoots him a death glare, before quickly collapsing into a fit of laughter.

"What did I do, sir?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing." He shakes his head, straightening himself out once again, trying to still look angry and vengeful despite the self-awareness.

"Maybe I was wrong to come here in hopes of getting money for this amusement park of mine. I should've known the Mobians would rig everything against me."

"Maybe. I cannot judge you, though."

"Pfft, well of course you can't. It was a good idea at the time."

"Affirmative, sir."

"You can stop doing that, Metal Sonic."

"Stop doing what, sir?"

Dr. Eggman gave him a look he couldn't quite interpret, and his eyes lit up with puzzlement.

"Sir-ing me. You can say 'Doctor', for pete's sake, but stop saying 'sir' so much!"

"Yes, sir-Doctor."

The tall man sighed and shook his head again. "You try."

"I succeed."

He would've pointed out that Metal Sonic hadn't ever succeeded his main mission, but he was feeling merciful today, so he only nodded.

"Let's just head home, Metal."

Metal Sonic beamed briefly, and then began to follow the Doctor out and away from that awful, rigged place.

It sure looked pretty from the outside, though. The lights, the general sense of wonder to it all- things like that made one think that it was a wonderful place. He and his maker would never be fooled by that one again.

He was interrupted out of his thoughts with a loud curse.

"What is it, sir-Doctor?"

Dr. Eggman stamped with rage. "All of these normal-looking cars and- where did I even park the Eggmobile?!"

Metal Sonic only shrugged as he scanned the area for signs of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This is possibly the fastest I've ever written a chapter, so I hope it's still up to par with the rest. I had a lot of fun writing this one- it practically wrote itself.


	8. Dinner Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vector and Vanilla go out to a fancy diner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think it's important to note that this is largely unedited. I'm very particular about my "seasonal stories" so my mind was just going to drive me crazy if I didn't post a chapter of this in September. So, here it is lol. I will be back and edit it shortly, but I just wanted to get that out there. Sorry about that guys. 
> 
> I'll delete this note once I fix the chapter up.

Many Travels:

Dinner Date

"So."

His mind racing, his heart pounding, he was only glad that he had the music playing loud enough in the background to drown out the sound of his awkwardness. He was only glad that at least Vanilla was still looking at him in a contented sort of way, and didn't seem to be as zoned out as his frantic mind. He was only glad that she couldn't see into his frantic mind and see that his thoughts were chaotic and disorganized around her, somewhere to the point of being almost stupid. He only wanted to convince her that his mind wasn't always so…clueless.

He glanced around the bustling diner out of nervousness and saw that all of the couples around were minding their own business, talking in a monotone buzz that was uninterpretable to his ear. The dim room was only brightened by the table lights and the evening light barely visible now through the windows. That, and well-Vanilla. Vector was pretty sure she could have lit up the entire room just on her own.

"So?" Echoed her smaller voice, and the rabbit tilted her head in a way that made his mind race even more. She was adorable, and she probably knew this well.

"So." He didn't intend to make it a game, but he had no words better than that. Quick. Think, Vector. Anything sophisticated, anything that sounds a little bit more upper class than you actually are. What is the stock market doing? What type of wine does she drink? Has she ever been to a restaurant like this one? No, that sounded too nosey and assumptious, he-

"Vector, thank you so much for taking me out here. It's not often that I get the chance to have a night out. Especially with such fine company." She held his gaze despite the way he couldn't quite hold hers.

"Oh, yeah. It's no problem. I was glad to do it. And I couldn't imagine anyone b-better to- well, mean, I would have picked you no matter who- I mean, I lov- I-"

"Oh, Vector. You're lovely," and just like that, she burst into a fit of laughter.

The crocodile turned a bright shade of red and looked off distantly at one of the nearby tables, trying to calm his own nerves. "Heh. Glad you think so."

The waiter interrupted them with the bringing of the wine, and just like that Vector broke out into a cold sweat once again. How did those couples in movies make a toast? Was that archaic now? Was it too formal? Would Vanilla think he was trying too hard?

And, suddenly, she had held out her glass and silenced his thoughts. "Cheers. To our first date."

He held out his glass, and with a bit too much force he broke his glass against hers, a stain of red settling over the tablecloth. "Cheers…" He only began sweating harder, looking up at her with a look of horror.

She only laughed quietly, in that small, feminine way of hers. "It's okay, Vector. It could've happened to anyone. It'll be fine." She called over the waiter, and Vector looked away as he cleaned the table.

"It can only get better from here I guess," he mumbled beneath his breath, as the same waiter walked away.

"You're so nervous. Come now, don't be so uptight! I've already had a good first impression of you, no need to impress me more now," she reassured.

"But I can do better, trust me," he replied.

"Even so," she smiled.

And with the silence found by her sipping at her wine, his panic returned. Even with her words still in mind. He wondered how long she'd like him, how long till he disappointed, how long till he couldn't think of any subjects to speak of. Like now. Would she get bored of his silence? Was she thinking- even now- of how much she wanted to leave. Or how she was embarrassed to be in front of him? Oh no. Had he ruined her reputation? She was such a refined, well-known woman, until he had to come in and-

"How is your family?"

"Oh. Y-ya mean the boys? Yeah, they're okay. We're okay. Charmy was excited to get to play with Cream today, and Espio is used to his business, so he's alright, and Cream- well, Cream is an angel, I'm sure she'll do well with them both."

He sort of felt embarrassed- big surprise- thinking of the difference in behavior between her daughter and his "boy".

Vanila was smiling anyway. "Cream was so happy that your detective companions were coming over this evening. I'm sure they are all having a great time together."

"Yep. And hopefully my boy will learn some manners from your daughter. Charmy, I mean, not Espio. Espio's been trying to teach Charmy some better manners, it's been going-" (trying not to think of the ways it was going not pretty well) "-it's been going pretty well."

"Oh, Charmy's a rambunctious little boy, but he's a sweetheart, I'm sure."

Vector wondered if she was joking, but played along with it. "Pfft, yeah. A devilish sweetheart." Then he realized that made him look a bit worse, and he shook his head, angry with himself. "But, anyway, I don't wanna dwell too much on that. I wanna know about you some more. What have you been doing this week?"

That seemed like a smooth transition, right? He was showing interest in her as a person after all, that was good. But now that he thought about it- did his enunciation bother her? Was she angry at him, secretly, for using words like 'wanna' in a fancy place like the one they were in? He surveyed the look on her face, and she only seemed happy. Hopefully she was not good at faking her emotions-

"Well, Cream and I went to the farmer's market on Tuesday. Other than that...well, I suppose it's been a quiet week. I worked in the shop as usual. It was nice, but I'm happy to get out of the house elsewhere. A change of scenery, perhaps. What have you been doing this week?"

Vector meant to have listened, but he was so busy trying to come up with a new conversation, that he didn't hear a word after 'well.' He was fortunate when the food happened to come, right before he could find himself embarrassed once again.

He was still slightly taken aback when he saw the portion of the food compared to the price, but when he looked over and saw that Vanilla was already beginning to eat, still content, he shrugged it off and tried not to eat bitterly. He had insisted on paying, despite the fact that he knew full well that she could afford it better than he could. But he was stubborn in the fact that he wanted to be the one giving her a night out, and it wouldn't sit well with him if she paid for it in the end. He only hoped that she wouldn't want dessert- though his heart would've gladly done it despite his wallet had she asked, and he knew this. Maybe he wasn't a cheapskate. At least, not with Vanilla. Not in front of Vanilla.

He gazed into her eyes, forgetting about his own dinner for a rare moment, and he felt her same sort of contentment seep into him. Maybe he had been so busy trying to think of words this whole time, so concerned with guarding his appearance, that he had forgotten to just enjoy her company and be grateful for her time. He hoped that the way she looked at him was a sign that she felt the same.

As they left the restaurant that night, walking side by side, the outside scenery had changed from the late evening to the early night. The streetlights lining the sidewalks were illuminated, and the cityscape in the distance was lit up just the same. The parking lot was far darker in comparison, sparsely brightened by the few lamplights in its midst. The chill in the air gave it a melancholy feel, and Vector inhaled deeply at first breath of it. Vanilla pulled her shawl up tighter around her shoulders.

"Well, do you mind if I walk you to your car?"

"I don't mind at all, sir."

With a swift, sure move that surprised even himself, Vector looped his arm with hers and set out into that darkness.

"I had a great time with ya tonight….and hopefully my nerves didn't get in the way of your night," the crocodile said in earnest.

"Oh, no. You were fine. I enjoyed my time tonight too." She slow-blinked up at him, and he could barely see her bright eyes in the night. "I was hoping that maybe we could do this again sometime?"

He was glad that she couldn't see, for the thousandth time that night, the blush that covered his snout. "I'd love to."

She giggled. "Good. And maybe next time we can picnic somewhere, get some fresh air. I think that would be wonderful."

He was grateful at her expressing interest in a less pricey escapade, and he nodded firmly. "Yeah. That's a good place to start."

They got to her car, and Vector was surprised to see the amount of reluctance in her face at leaving.

"Well, I hope to see you then."

"Me too. Have safe travels, Vanilla."

"And to you as well."

She leaned in and they touched lips, for only a moment. Vector was glad because whoa he just got kissed and whoa he was pretty sure he couldn't handle more than that moment of it. Vanilla kept herself too chastely to continue, and so she drew back and hummed sweetly.

"Have a good night."

As Vector turned to find his vehicle, face still burning and feelings aflutter, he called back to her, "Well, I don't think I can have a better night than that."

The moonlight was their companion on the drive back home.


End file.
